Soup!

Days like today, with the weather only dropping and dropping and "wintery mix" in the forcast, really only call for a large bowl of warm yummy soup! I absolutely love pretty much every form of soup. The only problem is that I dont have any large soup bowls! I would LOVE a set of these so that I dont have to get up from my warm cozy spot on the sofa just to refill my bowl.

Now, off to pour some of my yummy chicken soup that just finished! :)

These Boots Were Made For Walkin'

Creative Whim

Let me start out by saying that I have never taken an Acrylic Painting class; I really don't know what I am doing, besides the few times I have been brave enough to grab a paintbrush and play.

I guess that's my thing... I would say I am more "brave" than I am artistic, lol. I have never made a "masterpiece" by professionals' standpoints, but I love to play with paint and new mediums. I absolutely love paintings with lots of layers and textures and have always wanted to try one out.

I saw a tutorial a long time ago on how to add texture to a painting and the approach that this guy took was really cool so I have always wanted to give it a try. So, last night my courage built up and I took a wack at it. Lets just say that what I produced was NOTHING like the instructors, nor was it ANYTHING like I have hoped it would come out looking like.

That being said, its growing on me and I think I like it...

The first step was to get some joint compound at the hardware store. This proved to be harder than I thought when the guy at the store gave me spackling instead. I didn't realize this until after I started the painting; I was not a happy camper! Stupid hardware store guy! ugh.... I was not off to a good start.

After getting the spackling smoothed out on the canvas as good as I could (joint compound would have laid a LOT smoother so I had to overcome the "crumbles" that spackling would make) I was able to add some texture. I used lots of random things from around the house like a spatula, pine cone, one of Avery's teething rings (don't worry i through it away after I used it, lol), a garlic press, and doilies, etc. I was a bit disappointed with the way the spackling took the textures, also; they were not as deep and pronounced as I would have liked. Oh well.

Here is a pic of just the texture:

Once this dried overnight I was able to add some color. I had originally planned on doing layers of color, letting the dry in between applications and then wiping away where I wanted the under color to show. Due to the consistency of the spackling, it was not as firm as joint compound would have been, or smooth, so I just started adding a bunch of colors all at once.

At first I was really hating it. The man in the tutorial made it look SO MUCH easier and the paint glided on so smoothly. It was very frustrating. But, after working with it for a while and going back 15 million times to add a little here and a little there, I decided I had done all I could do and it was as good as it was going to get.

The picture really doesn't do it justice... Well, to some they might think the picture is better than in person, lol. What is kind of a dark blue here is more of a purple; it's mainly greenish/blue and purple.

I love the colors and I had fun making it. I would really like to try it again, though with the right materials and see if it makes a difference.

I know where I am going to hang it, I just need a beautiful frame to make it look better than it is ;).

PLEASE!

There's an art studio here in town that offers art classes of all sorts to adults. I am DYING to take some painting and photography and clay... ok all of them, classes!

I get giddy thinking about the things I could make!

Congratulations!

My baby sister, Hannah got engaged last night!! I can not believe it! There is something surreal about your little sister growing up and no longer a little girl in pigtails following you around on the playground. I cant begin to express how happy I am that her and Daniel are finally going to make it official and be together for the rest of their lives. They have such a sweet story since they have been friends and together off and on since about the 3rd grade; we've been waiting for this day for a LONG time! Daniel is going to make a wonderful husband and dad someday. Thankyou Daniel for making my sister so happy. I love you both!

Now, I have to wait 2 WEEKS before I can see that beautiful ring in person!! Ugh!

Favorite Flower

I am totally obsessed with white Peonies lately. They are soo beautiful! I think what I love most about them is that they have such a classic look that is traditional yet can be used in modern settings, also. I absolutely love the small touch of pinkish red on the tips of the center petals. Perfection!

I think I am going to have to do a painting at some point....

What About The Diaper Bag??

...or maybe the backpack diaper bag??

This article supposedly explains how your handbag describes your personality.... Pretty silly, really... I wonder what they would say about me HAHAHAHA

PS. The first comment at the bottom of the article was precisly this point!

My New Lifesaver

100 count cookie cutters.
Keeps her busy forever while I cook. I can even eat without her hanging on my legs!

So Close!

We finally got some tape of Avery taking some steps. Bare with the videos, they are kinda long, but it takes som coaxing to get her going, lol.

New Diaper Bag

Up until last week I had been using a normal over-the-shoulder diaper bag. Things started to get out of control when I felt like a pack mule just going to the grocery store. Until we found a cart, I would be carrying Avery (who now requires her blanket and baby doll), the cart cover, diaper bag (that weighed about as much as Avery does) and my purse if I had it with me. It was so embarrassing because just about every time we went someone would stop and ask if they could help me carry all of my stuff when they saw me juggling a million things and dropping half of them, then nearly falling over trying to pick it up!! Geez! I know they were being nice but something had to give!

So, for a while I have been looking for a backpack diaper bag. I found a few that I liked but none that I loved; they all looked too small. For Christmas my sister gave me this lunch box from Potterybarn Kids for Avery's snacks. I love it!!

For some reason I was on their website looking at some other stuff when I randomly spotted that they have backpacks to match the lunchbox! Now, I know they are made for little kids and I almost didn't buy it for that reason, but I thought I couldn't look any more silly than I already did at the store, lol. Plus, it was SO much cheaper than a real diaper bag and much larger so I went ahead and ordered it thinking I could just return it to the store if I hated it.

Turns out, I love it!!!!! I got the Large size, which was good because it fits me perfectly and has so much room for extra toys and clothes, plus the lunchbox clips on the front. One less thing I have to carry!

I love that it is hands free and I can wear it while I shop so it doesn't take up room in the cart.

I may look a little silly, but I think that comes with the territory when being a mom of little ones...